Military

Further Reading

Appendix D CAMOUFLAGE

DETECTION

Modern sensing devices detect
objects or terrain disturbances even though they are well camouflaged.
These devices detect reflected short-wave and radiated long-wave
infrared (ir) energy. Special video devices "read" ir
energy and detect dead or dying vegetation as well as objects
painted similar to their surroundings. As a counter, special camouflage
paint having a short-wave infrared response much like natural
vegetation is available. The long-wave or thermal infrared energy
radiated by a surface depends on the surface temperature. Hot
surfaces radiate much more energy than cool surfaces; thus, hot
surfaces are normally easier to detect with thermal infrared or
heat-sensitive devices. Certain precautions are taken against
detection by these devices.

Hot objects such as generators,
stoves, or other heat-generating items are not openly exposed.

Artificial surfaces are shaded
or insulated to reduce solar heating.

Distinctive shapes or patterns
which readily identify the type of feature or facility are obscured.

If natural material is used
for camouflage, there are two major considerations. First,
gathering natural material nearby creates voids, changes the
appearance of the natural surroundings, and reduces the effectiveness
of the camouflage. Therefore, limbs are cut from several trees,
not just one. Also, limbs are cut as close to the trunk or main
branch as possible. A tree should still appear "natural"
after branches are cut. Secondly, while natural material
aids both visual and infrared camouflage initially, it loses
effectiveness as it dries out. Thus, when vegetation is cut for
camouflage use, it is watered and/or replaced as it withers. The
replaced camouflage is disposed of so that it does not draw attention
to the concealed area. Excess soil from constructed positions,
waste materials, and any worn or damaged camouflage are moved
to another area and made to look like natural terrain. These materials
are also used for constructing a poorly camouflaged dummy position.

Regardless of the materials
used to camouflage a bivouac site, both visual and infrared capabilities
are considered. For example, a field fortification constructed
of galvanized steel is set in a grassy area. During midday, the
steel appears unnaturally bright to both visible and thermal infrared
sensing devices. In the visible range, it reflects more light
than the grass and differs in color. In the short-wave infrared
range, it appears darker than the surrounding vegetation. In the
thermal infrared range, it is much hotter than sod or vegetation.
Sodding the roof camouflages the position for all three types
of

always possible, artificial
materials are used. Paint or nets, such as those used on vehicles,
may help. Paint protects against detection by visible and short-wave
infrared devices, but shading by nets reduces the thermal infrared
signature and thus the detectability of the site to heat-sensitive
devices.

Natural Materials

Natural materials are used
for the three methods of concealment-hiding, blending, and disguising.
Indigenous materials provide the best concealment, are economical,
and reduce logistic requirements. For camouflaging, natural materials
are divided into four groups: growing vegetation (cut and planted),
cut and dead vegetation, inert substances of the earth, and debris.

Cut vegetation is used for
temporary concealment, completing or supplementing natural cover,
and augmenting artificial cover. It is also excellent for overhead
screening if cuttings are carefully placed to appear as in the
natural state. Cut foliage wilts and is therefore replaced frequently
(every 3 to 5 hours). In addition, cutting large amounts reveals
the site. Inert substances such as cut grass, hay, straw, or dead
branches require very little maintenance. However, because of
their dry nature, these items are a potential fire hazard and
lose their ability to provide infrared detection protection. Inert
materials are ideal when vegetation is dormant.

Other substances such as soil,
sand, and gravel are used to change or add color, provide coarse
texture, simulate cleared areas, or create shapes. Debris such
as boxes, tin cans, old bottles and junkyard items are also used
for camouflage in some cases. In winter, snow is used, but some
differences are expected between undisturbed and reworked snow,
especially with infrared detection devices.

Man-Made Materials

Man-made materials fall into
three categories: hiding and screening, garnishing and texturing,
and coloring.

Hiding and screening materials
include prefabricated
nets, net sets, wire netting, snow fencing, truck tarpaulins,
smoke, and so forth. Generally, these materials are most effective
when used to blend with natural overhead or lateral cover.

Garnishing and texturing
materials are used
to add the desired texture to such items as nets and screens.
Examples of such materials are gravel, cinders, sawdust, fabric
strips, feathers, wood shoring, and Spanish moss.

Coloring with standard camouflage
paint, available in ten colors in addition to black and white,
allows selecting a color scheme which blends with any natural
surrounding. Normally, standard camouflage paint has a dull finish,
is nonfading, possesses a certain degree of infrared reflectivity,
covers in one coat, and lasts approximately 9 months. If this
paint is not available, other materials such as crankcase oil,
grease, or field-expedient paint can be used as a stopgap measure.

FIELD SITE DEVELOPMENT

The four stages in the development
of a field site are planning, occupation, maintenance, and evacuation.
Since units often move without an opportunity to plan, the first
stage is sometimes eliminated. In that case, the five points listed
in the following paragraph are satisfied after arrival to the
area.

Planning

Because of the frequent halts
characteristic of modern mobile warfare, planning is difficult.
Since there is seldom time or facilities available for elaborate
construction, sites are quickly entered and evacuated. However,
no matter how swift the operation or how limited the time and
facilities, the unit commander plans for concealment. The general
area of the halt is determined by the tactical plan. Prior to
entering the area, the quartering party becomes familiar with
the terrain pattern through a careful study of maps and aerial
photographs. The party is also fully acquainted with the tactical
plan and the camouflage requirements. The five critical points
for the party are:

Unit mission.

Access routes.

Existing concealment.

Area size.

Concealment of all-around
position defense.

Camouflage begins before the
unit moves in to occupy the site. Vehicles are carefully controlled
in their movements so telltale tracks do not lead directly to
a camouflaged position. All traffic moves on existing roads or
trails or follows tree lines.

Occupation

Occupation is achieved with
a carefully controlled traffic plan which is strictly followed.
Guides posted at route junctions, fully aware of the camouflage
plan, enforce camouflage discipline. Turn-ins are marked to prevent
widening of corners by vehicles. Foot troops follow marked paths
as closely as possible. The position is sited so that it is not
silhouetted against the sky when viewed from an attacker's ground
position. It also blends--not contrasts--into the background.

Maximum use of trees, bushes,
and dark areas of the terrain reduces the amount of camouflage
required and the likelihood of air observation. It is equally
important that the concealing cover not be isolated, since a lone
clump of vegetation or a solitary structure is a conspicuous hiding
place and will draw enemy fire whether the enemy "sees"
anything or not. The terrain should look natural and not be disturbed
any more than absolutely necessary. This objective is best accomplished
by removing or camouflaging the spoil.

Natural terrain lines, such
as edges of fields, fences, hedgerows, and rural cultivation patterns,
are excellent sites for positions since they reduce the possibility
of aerial observation. Regular geometric layouts are avoided.
The lightweight camouflage screening system (LWCSS) is especially
important in preventing identification of recognizable military
outlines.

Before any excavation is started,
all natural materials, such as turf, leaves, forest humus, or
snow, are removed, placed aside, and later used for restoring
the natural appearance of the terrain. When a position cannot
be sited under natural cover, camouflaged covers are valuable
aids in preventing detection. Materials native to the area are
preferred; however, when natural materials are used over a position,
they must be replaced before they wilt, change color, and lead
to detection.

Maintenance

Next to occupation, maintenance
is the most critical stage. If the occupation was successful from
a camouflage standpoint, maintenance is relatively simple. Successful
maintenance involves frequent inspection of camouflage; active
patrol measures for discipline; and, where possible, aerial observation
and photos. When critical unit activities require congestion of
troops, such as for dining, the traffic plan must be rigidly enforced.
It is often necessary to use artificial overhead cover, such as
LWCSS. Garbage disposal pits are concealed, with special care
given to the spoil. During hours of reduced visibility, it is
human nature to relax and assume that the enemy cannot see during
darkness or in fog; however, the maintenance of noise and light
discipline, as well as camouflage, is important at all times.
Failure to maintain light and noise discipline may make all other
methods of camouflage ineffective. Even during periods of reduced
visibility, an exposed light can be seen for several miles. Any
unusual noise or noise common to military activity may draw attention
to its source.

New thermal imagery technology
is capable of detecting equipment not covered by thermal camouflage
nets, regardless of light or weather conditions. Generators, heaters,
or any other running engines create additional thermal signatures
which must be limited as much as possible. As a result, stricter
camouflage discipline is required during the hours of reduced
visibility, since a camouflage-undisciplined unit will become
even more recognizable. Wire and taped paths will aid personnel
in finding their way with minimum use of flashlights.

Evacuation

Although evacuation is the
last operation at the halt site, camouflage does not end when
the unit prepares to move out. An evacuated area can be left in
such a state that aerial photos reveal the strength and type of
unit, its equipment, and even its destination. It is an important
part of camouflage to leave the area looking undisturbed. Trash
is carefully disposed of or taken with the unit. Spoil is returned
to its original location to assume a unit is not engaged when
it departs. If engaged, it may not be possible to return the
site to its original appearance.

CAMOUFLAGE OF UNIT
POSITIONS

Command Post

Since the command post is
the nerve center of a military unit, it is a highly-sought enemy
target. Command posts have functional requirements which result
in creating easily-identifiable signatures such as--

Converging communication lines,
both wire and road.

Concentration of vehicles.

Heavy traffic which causes
widened turn-ins.

Antennas.

New access routes to a position
which could house a command post.

Protective wire and other
barriers surrounding the site.

Defensive weapon positions
around the site.

Primary camouflage solutions
include intelligent use of the terrain and backgrounds, and strict
enforcement of camouflage discipline.

Site Requirements

The site requirements of a
large command post are primarily reconnaissance and layout, quartering
parties, rapid concealment of elements, camouflage discipline,
and a well-policed track plan to prevent visitors from violating
it. Since a large headquarters is likely to remain in an area
for a greater length of time than a halted maneuver unit, the
site must be capable of being disclosed by changes in the terrain
pattern. It is unwise to locate a headquarters in the only large
building within an extensive area of operations. If the command
post is located in a building, there must be other buildings in
the area to prevent the target from being pin pointed.

Communications

Communications are the lifeblood
of a command post. Command posts sited to take advantage of existing
roads and telephone arid telegraph wires are easiest to conceal.
When new communication means must be created, natural cover and
terrain lines are used. The use of remote communications should
be concealed wherever possible.

Discipline

After the site has been selected
and camouflaged to supplement whatever natural concealment is
present, continued concealment depends on discipline. Tracks are
controlled; vehicles are parked several hundred meters from the
command post; security weapons and positions are concealed and
tracks to them made inconspicuous; all spoil is concealed, and
protective and communication wires follow terrain lines and are
concealed as much as possible. Night blackout discipline is rigidly
enforced. Routes to visitor parking areas are maintained in accordance
with the track plan. Power generation equipment is also concealed
to protect against noise and infrared signature detection.

In open terrain where natural
concealment is afforded only by small scrub growth and rocks,
overhead camouflage is obtained by using the LWCSS. Even in desert
terrain, broken ground and scrub vegetation form irregular patterns
and are blended with artificial materials. Digging-in reduces
shadow and silhouettes, and simplifies draping positions or tents.
In open terrain, dispersion is particularly important. Routes
between elements are concealed or made by indirect
in straight lines.

CAMOUFLAGE OF CIVILIAN
STRUCTURES

A headquarters within an existing
civilian structure presents the problem of hiding day movement
and concealing the evidence of night activity when blackout conditions
prevail. Military movement in a village or a group of farm buildings
is less discoverable if kept to a minimum. Attempts to alter the
appearance of buildings by disruptive painting is evidence of
occupation and simply reveals a military presence. Erection of
a small structure simulating a new garage or other auxiliary civilian
building is unlikely to arouse suspicion. Any major changes, however,
especially if the enemy is familiar with the area, will be closely
scanned by enemy air observers. When buildings are partially destroyed
and left debris-littered, installations are camouflaged with debris
to blend with the rough and jagged lines of the surroundings.
A few broken timbers, pieces of broken plaster, and a few scattered
rags accomplish quick and effective concealment. Other debris
usually available includes rubble, scrap metal, wrecked vehicles,
and furniture.

CAMOUFLAGE OF SUPPLY
POINTS

Camouflage of a supply point
includes all the difficulties of both maneuver unit and command
post concealment, plus a number of particularly troublesome factors
peculiar to supply points alone. Supply points vary in size from
large concentrations of materials in rear areas, to small piles
of supplies in the forward areas. Large amounts of equipment are
quickly brought up, unloaded, and concealed, yet are easily accessible
for redistribution. Flattops are used effectively providing the
supply points are not too large, time and materials are available,
and they blend with the terrain. For supply points which cannot
be concealed, decoy points will often disperse the force of an
enemy attack.

Natural concealment and cover
are used whenever possible. Stacks of supplies are dispersed to
minimize damage from a single attack. New access roads are planned
using existing overhead cover. In more permanent installations,
tracks running through short open areas are concealed by overhead
nets slung between trees. Traffic control includes measures to
conceal activity and movement at, to, and from the installation.
Even when natural cover is sparse or nonexistent, natural terrain
features are advantageously used.

In cultivated fields, supplies
are laid out along cultivation lines and textured with strip-garnished
twine nets to resemble standing stubble. In plowed fields, supplies
are stacked parallel to the furrows and covered with earth-colored
burlap for effective concealment. Access routes are made along
the furrow, and no unnatural lines appear on the pattern.

Camouflage
discipline measures at supply points include track plans that
result in minimal changes to terrain appearance, debris control
to prevent accumulation and enemy detection, concealment and control
of trucks waiting to draw supplies, and camouflage maintenance.

CAMOUFLAGE OF WATER
POINTS

Effective concealment of water
points and other support activities require

Control of spilled water and
adequate drainage to prevent standing pools of water which reflect
light.

Foliage not sufficiently thick
for perfect concealment is supplemented by natural materials or
LWCSS. Concealment is required for water point equipment, the
shine of water in the tanks, and any small open areas that are
crossed by vehicles or personnel. Shine on water is concealed
by a canvas cover or foliage. The characteristic shape of tanks
is distorted by foliage or artificial materials. Camouflage discipline
at a water point requires a water supply schedule for using units.
Lack of a schedule, or violation of it, usually causes a jam of
waiting vehicles which cannot be concealed.

CAMOUFLAGE OF CREW-SERVED

AND INDIVIDUAL
FIGHTING POSITIONS

If positions are expertly
camouflaged and maintained, the enemy will have great difficulty
in locating them until stumbling into a kill zone. Natural materials
used to camouflage fighting positions should be indigenous to
the area. As an example, willow branches from the edge of a stream
will not appear natural in a grove of oaks. Since spoil may differ
in color from the ground surface, it may be necessary to camouflage
the soil or remove it from the unit area.

Routes taken by troops to
fighting positions are obscured so footprints or telephone lines
do not reveal the positions. All camouflage procedures used for
any field location, both visual and thermal, are successfully
applied and maintained.

CAMOUFLAGE OF OTHER
DEFENSIVE POSITIONS

Other positions are camouflaged
the same way as positions located in the defensive area. Positions
include those for major weapons, special design shelters, protective
walls (in some cases, obstacles), and trenches.

CAMOUFLAGE IN SPECIAL
TERRAIN

Special terrain conditions,
such as deserts, snow regions, and urban areas require special
camouflage measures.

Deserts

Areas where there is no large
convenient overhead cover are unplowed fields, rocky areas, grasslands,
and other wide-open spaces. In certain types of flat terrain,
shadow patterns and judicious use of drape nets render objects
inconspicuous. Units in deserts or other featureless terrains
are highly vulnerable to breaches of light or sound discipline
during day or night. The eye's capability to reasonably discern
stationary objects is greatly reduced by this type of terrain.
Dust trails from moving vehicles identify a military position
faster than open, stationary, noncamouflaged vehicles. Luminosity
at night in open plain areas significantly degrades depth perception
and, dependent upon surface texture, makes visual observation
useless at long ranges and significantly enhances sound detection
methods.

A desert version of the LWCSS
provides concealment against visual, near infrared, and radar
target acquisition/surveillance sensor devices. A radar transparent
version of the LWCSS allows US units to camouflage radar without
degrading operations. The desert camouflage net is a complete
cover since it depends on ground surface imitation, both in color
and texture, for effect.

Snow Regions

A blanket of snow often eliminates
much of the ground pattern and makes blending difficult. Differences
in texture and color disappear or become less marked. Snow-covered
terrain, however, is rarely completely white. By taking advantage
of dark features in the lines, stream-beds,
evergreen trees, bushes, shadows of snowdrifts, folds in the ground,
and the black shadows of hillsides a unit on the move or halted
successfully blends itself into the terrain. However, exhaust,
ice fog, and infrared signatures are difficult to overcome regardless
of how well the unit is hidden.

Good route selection in snow-covered
terrain is usually more important than any other camouflage measure.
Because of the exposed tracks, skis and snowshoes are not used
near the area since their marks are more sharply defined than
foot tracks, and may be discovered with infrared imagery.

To avoid
tracking up the area, personnel, vehicles, and material are restricted
from open areas. Well concealed positions in snow terrain are
easily identified when the snow melts, unless precautions are
taken. Light discipline is enforced to prevent disclosure of the
position. Compacted snow on well-traveled paths melts slower than
the uncompacted snow, and leaves visible white lines on a dark
background. The snow is then broken up and spread out to hasten
melting.

By following communication
lines or other lines which are a natural part of the terrain,
tracks are minimized. Tracks coinciding with such lines are harder
to identify. A turn-in is concealed and the tracks themselves
continued beyond the point. Windswept drift lines cast shadows
and are followed as much as possible. Straight tracks to an important
installation are avoided. Snow region camouflage nets and paints
assist in camouflage operations.

Urban Areas

Because vegetation is scarce
in urban areas, maximum use is made of the shadows available.
Outside buildings, vehicles and defensive positions use the shadows
to obscure their presence. Troops inside buildings observe from
the shadow side of a window in order to be inconspicuous. Combat
in the urban environment usually produces considerable rubble
from damaged buildings and roads. This material is used for obstacles
as well as camouflage for defensive positions. These positions
are blended into the terrain and placed behind rubble as it would
naturally fall from a building.

In urban areas, the prime
concerns for individual fighting positions are exposure and muzzle
flash. When firing from behind a wall, the soldier fires around
cover (when possible), not over it. When firing from a window,
the soldier avoids standing in the opening and being exposed to
return fire.

Also, the soldier avoids firing with the gun muzzle protruding, especially at night when muzzle flash is so obvious. When firing from a loophole, the soldier
gains cover and concealment. The soldier is positioned well back from the loophole to keep the weapon from protruding and to conceal muzzle flash. When firing from the peak of a roof, soldiers use available cover.

The principles for individual
fighting positions also apply for crew-served weapons positions,
but with the following added requirements. When employing recoilless
weapons (90-mm RCLR and LAW), the soldiers select positions which
allow for backblast. Shown is a building corner improved with
sandbags to make an excellent firing position. Similarly, another
means of allowing for backblast while taking advantage of cover
in an elevated position is also shown. When structures are elevated,
positions are prepared to take advantage of overhead cover. However,
care is taken to ensure that backblast is not contained under
the building, causing damage or collapse of the structure, or
possible injury to the crew. When machine gun positions are fixed,
the same consideration as individual positions is given to exposure
and muzzle location. For further information on camouflage operations,
refer to FM 5-20.